Charlie Adam
Charles Graham "Charlie" Adam (born 10 December 1985) is a Scottish international footballer who played as a midfielder for Liverpool from 2011 to 2012. He is a left-footed central midfielder, known for his wide range of passing and is a set piece specialist. Liverpool career During the 2011 January transfer window, the-then Blackpool midfielder Charlie Adam was the subject of a £4,000,000 bid from Liverpool, but this was rejected. Liverpool's interest in Adam was maintained throughout the season and when the summer transfer window opened, Liverpool resumed their pursuit. Adam joined Liverpool on 7 July 2011 in a deal reported to be around £7,500,000. Adam expressed his joy about signing saying "I am absolutely delighted to be here" and added that "Liverpool is a massive club with terrific players and a terrific manager." On 8 July 2011, Adam was handed his favourite number 26 shirt, previously belonging to fellow midfielder Jay Spearing who gave up the shirt for Adam. Adam made his debut for Liverpool on 13 July 2011 in a friendly against Guangdong Sunray Cave, coming on as a substitute in the second half. Three days later Adam made his first start for Liverpool in the 6-3 friendly win against Malaysia XI, scoring his first Liverpool goal- a penalty- in the 27th minute. He made his competitive debut for Liverpool on 13 August 2011 against Sunderland - providing a cross for Luis Suarez's 12th minute goal. He scored his first goal in a Liverpool shirt against Bolton on 27 August 2011, with a right footed strike from the edge of the box. On 18 September 2011, Adam was sent off for two bookable offences in only the 28th minute of Liverpool's 4-0 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane, first for a foul on Luka Modric, and then for a high challenge on Scott Parker. He made amends a week later however in Liverpool's next League match, at home to Wolves on 24 September, when he struck a 25-yard shot that Wolves centre back Roger Johnson diverted into his own net. Adam achieved a similar feat on 27 November 2011 in a home match against Manchester City, where he attempted an ambitious long-range shot that was going well wide, until it was deflected into the net by City defender Joleon Lescott. Adam was one of Liverpool's standout performers in the game as he helped Liverpool dominate the midfield against opponents such as David Silva and Yaya Toure. Adam's early Liverpool career contained a number of impressive performances against some of the Premier League's elite sides, such as the aforementioned game against Manchester City. On 15 October 2011, Manchester United opted to deploy defender Phil Jones in midfield to man-mark Adam in an attempt to nullify his threat and on 20 November 2011, Adam produced a man-of-the-match display as Liverpool beat Chelsea 2-1 at Stamford Bridge. Adam capped his impressive performance with an inch-perfect cross-field ball from the middle of the pitch that was picked up by Glen Johnson on the right flank, who proceeded to net Liverpool's late winner. On 26 February 2012, Adam helped Liverpool to their first piece of silverware in six years as he played the duration of Liverpool's penalty shootout win over Cardiff at Wembley. Unfortunately for Adam however, his defining moment in the match was firing Liverpool's second penalty of the shootout high over the crossbar. Ultimately however the miss did not prove costly to Liverpool. In the new year however, Adam's form dropped along with the form of the Liverpool squad as a whole as the club's challenge for a Champions League spot quickly evaporated. Adam was entrusted to perform a greater defensive role with Lucas Leiva having sustained a season-ending knee injury, however Adam struggled to adapt and was perceived as being a somewhat reckless tackler, frequently conceding a number of free kicks to the opposition. On 21 March 2012, Adam sustained a knee injury in a 3-2 away defeat to QPR that would keep him on the sidelines for the remainder of the season. Adam returned for the 2012-13 pre season fixtures and became embroiled in a row with Tottenham's Gareth Bale after a match against Spurs on 28 July 2012. In the first half of the match, Adam clipped Bale's ankle from behind and after the match, Bale accused Adam of being a 'coward,' implying Adam attempted to injure the Tottenham man on purpose. Bale's quotes were motivated by a previous history of being fouled by Adam. Adam responded via his agent, referring to Bale's comments as 'outrageous.' As the competitive season began, it became apparent that Adam had slipped down the midfield pecking order at Anfield behind the club's established midfield stars and new signing Joe Allen. On 31 August 2012, it was confirmed that Adam had completed a move to Stoke City for a fee reported to be in the region of £4,000,000. It has been speculated that new manager Brendan Rodgers had informed Adam that he was not part of his plans- with Rodgers preferring a quick-passing, heavy-pressing game, which the playmaker Adam was less acquitted to, and despite Adam's wish to stay, accepted the situation and agreed to move on. Honours Liverpool *League Cup: 1 (2012) Stats External links * * Adam Adam